VIJAYAWADA: After Kochi in Kerala, Krishna district is second in the country to be covered by the services of Childline. The four regional centres of the Childline at Machilipatnam, Nuzivid, Nandigama and Gudivada, are scheduled to function from September 1.

The service has already proved to be a boon for street children and child labourers in Hyderabad and Vijayawada.

Though Krishna district Collector Navin Mittal announced expansion of the service to entire district in the first week of June, the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) took a long time to activate the toll-free telephone number 1098 at the centres.

BSNL connection

However, the officials of the BSNL said that they would connect the centres by the end of this month.

Once the four regional centres are equipped with telephone, people of the district can contact the nearest centre to pass information about orphans, street children and child labourers. The centres will function round-the clock and volunteers from the childline will shoulder the responsibility of rescuing children in need.

Focus on child labour

Each of the four centres will have four volunteers who will counsel children and if necessary, they will be admitted to a shelter run by non-government organisation (NGO), where food and accommodation will be provided to them. "Focus of the four centres will be mainly on child labour. These centres will also rescue orphans and children suffering from HIV and other diseases," says R. Shalini Prabhata, city coordinator of the Childline. The Childline began its services in the city in November 2000 and rescued some 8,000 children so far.

Training programme

"A majority of the children rescued by our volunteers here are those who left their houses following domestic problems and other reasons like fear of failing examination," she says.

The Vijayawada unit of the Childline conducted in-house training to volunteers of the new units on how to run the centres.

Network

"Improving network is the important factor to run the centre successfully by offering services to all the children in need. The centres have to establish contacts with NGOs working in rural areas, officials and public representatives. It will help them get information and offer help to the needy at the right time," Ms. Prabhata explains.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail